(Closed) Henna Mehndi for Indian Brides only???

I love the Mehndi bridal hand & feed painting, but I am not of Indian decent (irish american). However my fiance and I are fan’s of eastern art, and are venue is 100% Indian/Eastern decor. I’m thinking it would be in poor taste to have my feet ( as well as my BM’s) painted…possibly even culturally offensive.

@tranquility: Thank you for the reply! I’m just afraid that it may be recieved the wrong way…Personally if i were invited to a “western” wedding, and there was Mehndi painting on any members of the wedding, I wouldnt think of it as offensive…but everyone is different. It seems like sometimes borrowing from others cultures can be frowned upon, simply because it may be interpreted as using a cultural tradition as a fashion statement, ya know? I can appreciate it for what it is, even though i am not of that culture. Its beautiful, and I think would tie into my venue atmosphere perfectly.

I’ll just let you know that apparently Henna is only approved as a hair dye by the FDA and apparently they seize the Henna meant for body art. I know that it is for sale here in Canada.

Henna is done to celebrate a great life moment. It is had not only been done in India but in other parts of the middle east as well. I am of middle eastern descent and I personally don’t even think twice about it when I see it on people of European descent. Because I think it is cool that other people people find something like Henna as important as I do. My only thing is that people need to understand the meaning behind it if they want to use it. But I hold that standard for everyone. And about any sort of religious/cultural thing.

As far as I see it, since you and your FI already enjoy the eastern art and style I think its just as way of personalizing your wedding to you not a fashion fad. I think its a great idea and don’t see how anyone would find it offensive. And if they do I got your back

I am from South Asian bkgd and I would not find this offensive. Partially because henna is not a religious thing. It is a cultural thing. And these days cultures are becoming one huge melting pot with so many different cultures marrying each other. So there is bound to be henna somewhere.

Historically it is used to denote blessings on a new bride-to-be or a new mom-to-be. It is hard to explain because it goes very close with ornaments. (Which aren’t really considered a blessing!) There are some plants in India which take ‘holy’ status. This isn’t one of them but it is up there somewhere. Kinda like being in the White House but not being the actual President or even closely related (i.e. his wife) but still an important White House figure.

This explaination probably either made a lot of sense or NO sense. Haha! I am sorry for the latter. Bottom line: it is not offensive at all. Henna away!!!!

Hi mustlovedogs! As a caucasion American henna artist, I wish more brides like you were around! Mehndi is so beautiful, and you both already appreciate it.I personally, can’t get enough of mehndi

You can find extremely talented henna artists in your area by looking through the web. I would check the artist’s reviews and look to see that their work is consistent. Many artists will do a consultation before hand so both parties know what to expect on mehndi day. HennaTribe has artist listings, you can also find many on facebook with business pages. Good luck finding your artist!